Graduate School

Child Care Subsidy

The Child Care Subsidy provides assistance for graduate student parents with the costs of child care during their time at Brown.

Deadline

Calendar year 2025: Application is due October 21, 2024. Applications received after the deadline will be accepted on a rolling basis.

Application (PDF)

Eligibility - Master's Students

Non-MFA Master’s students are eligible to receive up to $5,000 per child (up to 3 children), ages 0-6, per household if they meet the following qualifications:

  • Are enrolled in a degree program at least half-time.
  • Have a legal dependent between the ages of 0 to 6 for whom they are financially responsible in the upcoming year.
  • Had a total household adjusted gross income of less than or equal to $100,000 in calendar year 2023.
  • Are unmarried, or have a spouse who meets one of the criteria below:
    a) Employed at least part-time
    b) A full-time student
    c) Considered legally disabled
    d) Unemployed, but actively seeking employment

Graduate students who become parents or matriculate mid-year are eligible to apply for the current year subsidy once their child is enrolled in child care.

Eligibility - Doctoral & MFA Students

Doctoral and MFA students are eligible to receive up to $6,000 per child (up to 3 children), ages 0-6, per household and up to $3,000 per child age 7-13 if they meet the following qualifications:

  • Enrolled in a degree program at least half-time.
  • Have a legal dependent between the ages of 0 to 13 for whom they are financially responsible in the upcoming year.
  • Had a total household adjusted gross income of less than or equal to $100,000 in calendar year 2023. The University will waive the household adjusted gross income eligibility criteria when both parents are Brown University PhD and/or MFA students.
  • Are unmarried, or have a spouse who meets one of the criteria below:
    a) Employed at least part-time
    b) A full-time student
    c) Considered legally disabled
    d) Unemployed, but actively seeking employment

Graduate students who become parents or matriculate mid-year are eligible to apply for the current year subsidy once their child is enrolled in child care.

How to Apply

Eligible graduate students should submit complete applications as soon as they become eligible to University Human Resources at childcare@brown.edu (please send securely via Virtru).

If you are not familiar with Virtru email encryption, review the links below to install and activate Virtru prior to sending your application and documentation.

Eligible graduate student parents are strongly encouraged to submit their materials by the October deadline, allowing time for application review, award notification, and award processing. 

Graduate students who apply after January 1 may have their awards prorated, depending on when their application is received (e.g. a student applying in April will receive a prorated award for April - December). Please note that students matriculating in September who are awarded a Child Care Subsidy for the current year will receive a prorated award covering only the months they are active, eligible students (e.g. September - December if they apply in September, October - December if they apply in October, etc).

Application Components

Subsidy applications must include the following components:

  • Completed Application Form
  • Supporting documents:
    1) The first two pages of your IRS form 1040 from the prior year and the first two pages of form 1040 for your spouse if filed separately.
    2) A copy of a birth certificate or certificate of adoption for the child(ren) receiving the subsidy.
    3) Work visa, if applicable, for a spouse who is unemployed but actively seeking employment.

Subsidy Award Disbursements

The child care subsidy is disbursed by check, either issued electronically, as an addition to stipend checks, or issued as a physical check sent to your campus box (if you are not set up for electronic payments). To be sure, please check with Payroll if you have questions. It is recommended that students set up direct deposit to avoid any delay in receiving a payment.

For students receiving a subsidy for the full calendar year, the subsidy is disbursed in two installments: the first in January and the second in September.  Students who are awarded a subsidy after the start of the annual cycle may receive one or two payments, which may be prorated, depending on when their application is received.

Questions?

Contact University Human Resources at 401-863-2589 or childcare@brown.edu

FAQ